Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)

The opening sentence of the article Life After the Oil Crash reads: "Civilisation as we know it is coming to an end soon". This is not the wacky proclamation of a doomsday cult or conspiracy theory society, rather it is the scientific conclusion of the best paid and most widely respected geologists, physicists and investment bankers in the world. These are rational, professional, conservative individuals who are absolutely terrified by the phenomenon known as global peak oil.

Given that we are one of the most oil dependent countries in the world, we must ask what we are going to do. It seems obvious that the first thing to do is to stop giving our reserves away. The scarcer oil and gas become, the more economic it will be to harvest smaller finds. What are we doing, then, issuing frontier licences? Those pursuing such a policy are in total denial. This motion calls for an end to this practice. There is no argument that can justify it. We must end the give away of something the Irish people, not the Government, own.

We must replace oil and gas by giving serious consideration to renewable energy. While measures like the new household grant scheme are welcome, we must be more ambitious and we must simplify the process by which people can avail of such schemes. Those trying to avail of these grants are running into red tape, with local authorities adopting different approaches to the need for planning permission for solar panels. It must be simple for people to be proactive. The Government must consider potential problems instead of expecting the public to work their way through the red tape. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government must issue planning guidelines so we can maximise the take up.

Bringing gas onshore must be done with the co-operation of the public. They should not feel that their safety can be traded. Otherwise communities adjacent to finds will resist. What has happened in Rossport does not make people feel confident.

Energy will form an important part of the manifestos during the next general election. The public will want a plan of action to deal with the ongoing petrol and diesel increases. There are obvious concerns already. The predicted regular increases for charges for ESB and gas will require more than a pedestrian response that aims for 13% of electricity to be produced from renewable sources by 2010. The looming decision prior to the allocation of offshore licences for exploration for oil and gas is critically important. Bringing gas onshore at any price is not sustainable politically.

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